MMA in Asia, post-Covid, is thriving – the region is the sport’s Next Big Thing, insiders say

Mixed martial arts has not only survived Covid-19 but is booming, with industry heavyweights such as the UFC now targeting Asia

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Mixed martial arts has not only survived the pandemic, it has thrived. Just ask Frank (left) and George Hickman, who set up Bangtao Muay Thai MMA in Phuket, Thailand. Photo: Bangtao Muay Thai MMA

Patrick Blennerhassett

Published: 1:15pm, 30 Oct 2022

It took an event as uncharacteristic as a snow day in Atlanta to change George Hickman’s life.

The North Carolina native and former college wrestler had moved to the American state of Georgia and was competing in amateur mixed martial arts, working a day job as a car salesman. One January day in 2014, Hickman found himself trapped inside the showroom as the city ground to a halt under a rare blanket of snow.

“I was on the internet killing time and I saw there were try-outs for Tiger Muay Thai,” says the now 36-year-old, referring to the famous gym on the Thai island of Phuket, which opened in 2003.

“It was a scholarship, they gave you a bit of money, and it’s since become a really big thing.”

Many fighters go to Thailand to practise and improve their technique with local trainers. Photo: Getty Images

Tiger Muay Thai is now seen as a global hotspot for mixed martial arts (MMA), with several globally recognised fighters having attended camps or trained there, including former strawweight champion and Chinese MMA superstar Zhang Weili and current Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski.

“My original thinking was that I was just going to be there for a year and train full time,” says Hickman. “But I knew when I got there I didn’t want to leave. I remember like it was yesterday, riding around on a motorbike and just seeing things that I was in awe of, and I was like, ‘I never want to leave this place.’”